PSY: Revised Synthesis: The Role of the Researcher
The Role of the Researcher
Edgar Rangel
Department of Psychology, Grand Canyon University
RES- 815: Introduction to Research
Dr. Renee Winter
October 25, 2021
Thank you, please see any embedded comments below in your Synthesis Week 5 paper. The information below will help you with developing and revising the week 7 revised synthesis paper. Also, please take a look at, and familiarize yourself with, the assignment details and the rubric that will be used to grade your weeks 7 revised Synthesis paper so you can keep those elements in mind as you revise your paper. You are not writing an entirely new paper. You are using the week 5 paper and using my feedback to revise the paper to submit in week 7. There are some additions to this assignment. PLEASE READ THE ASSIGNMENT DETAILS, ANNOUNCEMENT, AND USE THE RUBRIC.
I want to make sure you are on track to do well on the week 7 revised synthesis paper. Below are some important points to help ensure your paper meets the requirements. PLEASE CAREFULLY READ THE FOLLOWING INSTRUCTIONS:
Make sure you read the instructions for the synthesis paper (for weeks AND the rubric that will be used to grade it, very carefully. Note:
1. Include a statement of common themes addressed in each of the three articles.
2. A statement of the conclusions that can be drawn when the articles are taken together as a single entity. What is the overall message you want to convey about the group of articles within your theme discussions?
YOU SHOULD IDENTIFY 2 THEMES COMMON ACROSS ALL 3 ARTICLES. Identify what the theme is and then discuss what each article (using the author and publication year to identify, not the article title) contributes on that theme. In your paper you should include a synthesis of the common themes you identified.
I have included some help at the end of this message that explain synthesis if you are unfamiliar with it. Basically synthesis is combining. It is like combining two elements to form a compound in chemistry. Two components combine/react to form something entirely new. You will consider the themes together and come up with an overall statement of conclusions on what you think the overall message is. A SYNTHESIS IS NOT SIMPLY SUMMARIZING OR RECAPPING INFORMATION FROM THE ARTICLES OR RESTATING THEMES.
1. Make sure you follow all APA formatting guidelines, and that your paper is ORGANIZED correctly. Specifically, your paper must have the following:
1. An APA 7th edition TITLE PAGE, correctly formatted
1. An INTRODUCTION. A brief introduction to the paper to provide context and to hook the reader, introduce the articles information being analyzed. Include the author(s) and year of publication for each article. (DO NOT use the actual title of the articles. Identify by author and publication year) Also, be sure your introduction includes a CLEARLY STATED PURPOSE AND THESIS STATEMENT. Below is a good example of a template you could follow:
“The purpose of this paper is to analyze, compare, and synthesize themes from three articles examining support and diversity… (fill in with your identified two themes). A synthesis of common themes identified in the analysis suggests that … (fill in with your thesis statement here)….”
2. SECTIONS. I recommend including a separate section for each common theme you identify. Each section should have a centered and bolded section heading. The section heading can just be the name of the theme that the section is about. So let's say your first theme/section is Diversity. The section would discuss your key ideas about this theme (be sure to properly cite the articles as you discuss the information you get from them). Remember to write in your own words or paraphrase, NO Direct Quotes. Remember to include a synthesis in your paper. This is where you discuss the articles/themes taken together as a single entity, and what you determine the overall message to be. REMEMBER, A SYNTHESIS IS NOT SIMPLY SUMMARIZING INFORMATION FROM THE ARTICLES OR RESTATING THE THEMES. REMEMBER, A SYNTHESIS IS NOT SUMMARIZING INFORMATION FROM THE ARTICLES OR THE AUTHORS THOUGHTS. Write about the topic focusing on how these themes support your thesis about the main topic. Do not focus on or write directly about the articles or authors thoughts, findings, sample, data collection, etc. You want to focus on paraphrasing (summary) writing about what you just read. Write about the main topic and the two themes in your own words and voice using the articles as support for your assertions. Use third person narrative.
1. CONCLUSION section. This is where you will very briefly recap all the major points you made in your paper. The conclusion needs to make the paper come full circle. Think of it as a mini condensed version of the paper, hitting major points and showing that the purpose/thesis, stated in the introduction, has been accomplished. Reaffirm the conclusion you have come to base on the analysis/synthesis you did. Include future recommendations. I would begin by looking at some of the limitations and generate your recommendations from there. Use citation in the conclusion to make a strong connection to the research discussed in the paper.
1. REFERENCES & CITATIONS. Make sure your paper is properly supported throughout with citations of sources (in this case the sources are the 3 articles being examined) for the information you provide, and the points your make. There should be a reference for every source cited in your paper. Make sure your in-text citations, references, and the references page are correctly formatted according to APA guidelines.
The last thing I want you to focus on is writing mechanics (sentence structure, grammar, etc..). This especially is something a tutor could help with (along with APA formatting) if necessary. Please proofread, and if you can, get someone else to proofread your paper as well.
Here are a few resources on SYNTHESISIZING that you may find helpful:
I hope that helps. See more comments below .
Recognizing the Role of The Supervisor and the Doctoral Scholar in Identity Development
Introduction
A synthesis of ideologies is a concept of comparative analysis that focuses on the development of thematic presentation to allow for the expansion of thoughts to add value. In consideration of that, writing is integral in the development of doctoral identity due to the establishment of footing within a specific competency. However, there is no doctoral identity without discussing the relationship between the faculty, mentors, and the resultant effort to maintain such a relationship. This means that the stake control within the doctoral identity is achievable by looking into the impact of such relationship on the foundation of identity and building blocks of ownership of that identity. Therefore, the relationship between the supervisor and the doctoral scholar is essential in establishing the direction of growth into an independent researcher and thus scholarly identity. The how is the process that can only be understood through recognition of the role of the supervisor and that of the doctoral scholar in identity development. Comment by Renee Winter: Good. It was important to use feedback from the week 3 worksheet cover page and embedded comments to write the introduction and other sections of the paper. Here is a suggestion for enhancing your introduction providing research and a summary leading into the theme synthesis discussion. This would follow your hook statement. This review presents a comparison of three empirical research articles examining the main topic. A discussion of themes common across each of the studies is included as is a discussion of each study's research purpose, results and conclusions presented. The review concludes with a presentation of the author's recommendations for future research. The first article presented and discussed in this review by Author (year) examined.. The second article considered herein by Author (year) sought to understand. The third article considered and discussed in this review by Author (year) sought to uncover. Then close the introduction with a transition sentence into the theme sections. This is an example showing how to form a theme statement and thesis statement: The two themes identified from the three empirical articles are (state the two themes). A discussion of the common elements and themes across each of the articles is followed by a summary and discussion of conclusions drawn from the each of the articles contained examined herein.
Discussion Comment by Renee Winter: You should have two theme headers, not a header that states discussion for both themes you identified. Please make sure you are using the APA 7th edition template provided.
According to Inouye & McAlpine, 2017, dDoctoral students often look forward to entering the academic community and, within that motivation, a conscious choice of determining their success in being recognized for their work (Inouye & McAlpine, 2017). This means that the development of research and presentation f that research through writing is the gateway to the community. By understanding that the feedback given for that work is integral in shaping the scholar, there is a communication of the supervisor's role. This role points to the importance of the situation and creates assurance within the student without coddling them and hence realizing that writing is positioning oneself to criticism. The criticism is essential to allow the growth of students’ confidence by contributing to the transitioning element of being accountable for their inputs and thus the intensity of the length of their involvement in looking deeper within a subject (Garcia & Yao, 2019). Comment by Renee Winter: Here is a demonstration of synthesis writing to help build synthesis skills for the upcoming synthesis paper.
The ability of s researcher to recognize their capability is by gaining the attitude to deliver works and be prepared for negative or positive feedback and, in the end, stand by their formulation constructively. The intention is to attain a process of writing that remains constant instead of changing a topic every time research feedback comes negative. By working with the feedback, a doctoral student researcher develops an attitude of changing their opinions by taking positive and negative feedback. As such, it is taken as an engagement in optimizing their writing both in style and in communicating its need, hence a constructive navigation journey to the body of work. Marked by the fact that feedback can often breed anxiety, the continuous feedback allows for that process to be familiar for intensifying researching a way that is essential for timeliness and delivery through evaluation. The result is the development of self-assessment that shapes the doctoral student into a specific type of writer by upgrading their ability to handle anxiety, wait, and knowledge transference (Coffman et al., 2017). Comment by Renee Winter: Remember that there should be research support for key ideas and thoughts.
More often than not, in writing, centrality to self and development of thought processing to solving the challenge within writing and clarification of purpose is achieved by accounting for the developing of draft multiple times. The identity trajectory begins with the first outline and within that contribution of positioning to reflect goal orientation. Therefore, by taking into account the role of a doctoral student in research writing as the contributor, the supervisor only comes in as a supporter. Their role is to aid the development of the point by providing tools to articulate thought to others. The problem in specific research could be identified, but without strategizing, the result is an outcome that fails to reach out to the audience; as such, the supervisor's support gives guidelines in socialization with others. The meaning is pointing out the direction to take and an expectation that the doctoral student will work with others or try to participate in a discussion that would foster the advancement of thought (Inouye & McAlpine, 2017). This socialization aspect accounts for the isolation of challenges within the research process and the redundancy of work. In most situations, the supervisor's role is to create opportunities for such discussion by assigning discussion groups, providing an environment that stimulates this type of communication, and strategic directional development for the specificity of discussion (Coffman et al., 2017). Comment by Renee Winter: Remember that there should be research support for key ideas and thoughts.
In consideration of interactivity, its integration is as crucial as uncomplicating the working process in writing development. The complication of the social environment is a critical control point that allows doctoral student growth in ways that adds value to the research (Garcia & Yao, 2019). The key things within providing that worth are the creation of fluency in speaking about the creative process of the research elements in ways that do not necessarily need someone to know in-depth about the issue raised. By regard this as necessary, the social interaction allows the doctoral student to be as simplistic in their explanation and make their work concise and precise. It is understanding and interactivity meaningfully. The supervisor support gives that to the student and, by extension, creates learning opportunities for the actualization of norms to expand the audience's reach and ability to reach. Comment by Renee Winter: Remember that there should be research support for key ideas and thoughts. Comment by Renee Winter: Please see cover page for help with general revisions.
Conclusion
The relationship between the student and the supervisor establishes the direction of growth of an identity of the scholar ins a way that makes them independent. This is done by clearly defining their roles in the process and setting expectations with expected outcomes. The role of the supervisor is to support the active and disciplined participation of the doctoral student. This allows them to focus their growth in a way that makes transitions thematic and within the context of their capability by pointing out limitations, providing tools, and allowing for accountable actions. As such, the role of the doctoral student is to take the initiative to actively pursue and optimize the given support by imbuing personalized efforts directionally. The intention is to recognize what works within that by contextualizing purpose to identity statement, hence identifying fit. Looking at it this way, further research on the pressure that might be perceived due to this relationship is essential when looking at doctoral student identity development. Comment by Renee Winter: Good remember to support the conclusion with scholarly research to connect back to the overall theme discussion of paper.
References
Coffman, K., Putman, P., Adkisson, A., Kriner, B., & Monaghan, C. (2016). Waiting for the expert to arrive: Using a community of practice to develop the scholarly identity of doctoral students. International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, 28(1), 30-37.
Garcia, C. E., & Yao, C. W. (2019). The role of an online first-year seminar in higher education doctoral students’ scholarly development. The Internet and Higher Education, 42, 44-52. doi:10.1016/j.iheduc.2019.04.002.
Inouye, K. S., & McAlpine, L. (2017). Developing scholarly identity: Variation in agentive responses to supervisor feedback. Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice, 14(2), 3-19.